


Nightmares

by very_distinctive_flamingo



Category: The X-Files
Genre: Comfort, Dreams and Nightmares, Episode: s01e03 Squeeze, Episode: s01e06 Shadows, Fluff, Light Angst, Nightmares, Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-04
Updated: 2020-02-06
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:21:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22563937
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/very_distinctive_flamingo/pseuds/very_distinctive_flamingo
Summary: Scully hasn't had nightmares since she was a kid. But her work on the X-Files, her many near death experiences, and her growing connection to Mulder may be affecting her more than she'd like to admit.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 12





	1. chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> yay! my first fic that's not just one super short scene lol. i'm not super sure of the direction this is taking, but i decided to focus on bad dreams or nightmares (as you probably gathered from the title) and the things that might affect scully as she works on the x-files and struggles with becoming open to things she's never even considered before (oh yeah, and almost dying like every other week). i really hope you guys enjoy this! :)

Scully hadn’t had a nightmare in years. Bad dreams were things of her childhood, induced by whatever scary television show she had begged to watch and calmed by her mother’s voice and a cup of warm milk. As she went into high school, college and then med school they turned into anxiety dreams. Realizing she had a paper due in a class she didn’t know existed, being halfway through a big presentation only to realize she had no pants on, things like that. Her solution to those was always the same: study more. She would wake and go to her desk, still in her pyjamas, and read her textbooks until the words swam in front of her eyes and the sky lightened. 

And she made it out. She had the job she’d worked so hard for. She didn’t have anxiety dreams anymore. Nothing plagued her sleep. Until she walked into that basement office for the first time. And then her world stretched and became bigger, encompassing things she never knew existed outside of urban legends. She woke in the night, her heart beating, her mind full of images she still couldn't reconcile with reality. With each new horror, it grew harder to remember what sleep had been like before these creatures existed in her mind and out of it. She felt as though she could sense them in the night, roaming the earth, waiting for the right time to strike. She could no longer look at the sky with only wonder. But still, she wanted to believe. 

I.

He was here. Fingers stretching, reaching for her. Yellow eyes flashing with a feral hunger. He lunged- Scully bolted upright, trying not to scream. Her hand reached instinctively for her gun as she scanned her room with wild eyes. Everything was in its usual place, all of the shadows looked familiar. No liver eating mutants were attacking her. She put her hand on her chest, feeling her heart race. “You’re safe,” she told herself. But still she felt like there was something hiding in the shadows. Her hand went instinctively to her necklace, rubbing the pendant. It had been such a comfort to get it back after Tooms had taken it, and in her dream her neck had been naked without it. 

Feeling her skin crawl with fear, she forced herself to get out of bed. The floor was cold on her bare feet, and she sank gratefully into the couch. She turned on the light and reached for her phone, dialing Mulder’s number without thinking. He was the only person who could understand this. The only person who had come to mind as an antidote to her fear. The phone rang once, twice, and Scully realized that it was probably four in the morning and her partner was probably asleep. He picked up on the fourth ring. 

“Mulder, it’s me,” she said. 

“Hey, Scully.” His voice was remarkably clear for four in the morning. “What’s up?” She twirled the cord of the phone around her finger, suddenly feeling silly. 

“I wanted to see if you had any new theories on our case besides telekinesis,” she said. 

“At four in the morning?” He chuckled. 

“Yes. Do you?” She wasn’t telling him that she was scared and his voice seemed to be the only thing calming her. She wasn’t telling him that she hadn’t even thought of calling anyone else. She wasn’t telling him how much she already needed him. 

“Yeah, I do.” She could hear his smile and it was contagious. “It could be a ghost…” 

Scully fell asleep with the phone pressed to her ear and didn’t wake until her alarm went off in her bedroom. She realized that she hadn’t dreamt at all, and she felt better rested than she had in a while. She smiled to herself and got ready for the day. 

She walked into the office to see that Mulder was already there, a rare occurrence. 

"You're up early," she remarked, taking her usual seat across from him. 

"I've been here for a while," he said bashfully. "I couldn't get back to sleep, so I figured I might as well get a head start..." 

He kept talking, but Scully was mostly focused on the circles under his eyes that she hadn't noticed before. She knew he had trouble sleeping, but she'd gone and woken him anyway. And for what? Because she was scared? It all seemed so silly in the light of day, and she was embarrassed to remember how her voice had trembled when he'd answered the phone. She'd given him such a stupid excuse too, and now she couldn't decide whether or not she hoped he bought it. For all he knew, maybe she had trouble sleeping too. They barely knew each other. Definitely not well enough for late night phone calls. But underneath the embarrassment was a nagging voice reminding her that he hadn't seemed bothered by her call. As a matter of fact, he'd kept talking to her long after her fear subsided. They'd been on the phone for half an hour at least, probably more. It had felt comfortable. Like she'd known him for a couple years instead of a couple months. 

"And I think we should head down there, just to check it out. Scully, are you listening?" 

"What? Oh yes, I'm sorry." She jolted from her thoughts. "What were you saying?" He smirked at her, but continued. She watched him fiddle with a pencil as he talked. This was the man who had woken up at four in the morning to talk to her about ghosts and telekinesis just to have her sleepily shoot down every one of his theories. This was the voice that had slowly lulled her to sleep on her couch. It amazed her, how familiar he felt. How she already knew she could count on him to comfort her when something went wrong. If the nightmares continued, she could turn to him. They'd known each other such a short time, and already she had placed more trust in him than she even knew.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set during Ice. Mulder is the only person she can trust, but how does she feel when they find him with blood on his hands? After all, he always tells her to trust no one...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is a shorter chapter, but i just had to write something for ice, it's one of my all time favourite episodes. i think it's the first time they really trust each other, which makes it a big milestone for them. hope you enjoy this!

Scully shoved a chair under her doorknob and sat against the wall, trying not to think of where she was. Abandoned in Alaska, with absolutely no one she could trust. Even Mulder, who had quickly become much more than a work partner, was a big question mark. She wanted to trust him, she always did. And she did. But not right now. Not when it could be the last mistake she’d ever make. Not when they’d found him bent over a dead body with blood on his hands and no proof that it wasn’t his doing. Scully closed her eyes and let her thoughts run wild until she finally fell unconscious. 

“Mulder?” She stepped towards him. His back was towards her, he was facing the open door. Beyond him, it was darkness flecked with white snow. He didn’t move when she said his name.  
“Mulder? Are you okay?” She stepped closer and closer until she was close enough to touch him. The back of her neck prickled, like something was behind her. She fought the urge to turn and look, keeping her focus on Mulder. Something seemed off about him, like his arms were too long, his fingers too thin. Something moved under the skin of his neck, writhing. She felt frozen, she tried to run and couldn’t.  
“Mulder! Fox!” She reached for him, and he turned. His eyes were black, and his face was contorted in a fearful expression. She still couldn’t move. He was so wrong, so not him. “I trusted you,” she cried out in her mind. “I trusted you to be you!” 

She woke herself crying, reached up and felt the tears on her face in wonder. That dream had been so vivid, so real. She was afraid. She was afraid to trust him and now more than ever. This could be the end of them. Scully got to her feet slowly, yanking the chair out from under the handle of the door. Her feet carried her down the darkened hall, she didn’t even have to think. She was still in a dream haze, scared and needing to know he was still himself. She stopped at his door, hand raised, too afraid to knock. Too afraid to trust him. She nearly broke down crying, instead she knocked on the door. He opened it a second later.  
“Scully, what’s wrong?” He didn’t have to ask if she was okay; he could see she wasn’t. 

“I’m scared,” she admitted. “I don’t trust anyone here.” 

“You can trust me,” he said, not understanding. She shook her head. 

“No, that’s the worst part. I can’t. I want to, but I can’t,” she told him, feeling tears constrict her throat. He stepped aside, inviting her into his room with a wave of his hand. She shuffled in and he closed the door behind her. The tiny reading light was on and his bed was untouched. Scully sat down, rustling the blankets out of place for what she was sure was the first time. He sat beside her, not too close. She was glad for the distance, glad that she didn’t have to think about the blood on his hands while he touched her. 

“Let me check your neck,” he said suddenly. Scully breathed a sigh of relief. If he checked her, she could check him. Then she’d know whether she was safe or she was making the biggest mistake of her life. She slipped off her flannel, bracing herself for the cold air to hit her bare skin. But Mulder’s room was warm, which explained the short sleeve shirt he was wearing. She did flinch when he touched her, but his hands were hot and careful, and soon she found herself relaxing into his touch. “You can’t trust him,” she reminded herself. He removed his hands and she turned back to him. 

“You’re good,” he said. She offered him a small smile, simply because she could hear the relief in his voice. It was nothing compared to what she felt when he turned his back to her. She pulled the collar of his shirt down slowly, afraid to touch him, afraid of what she might find. His skin was cool, and she tried to keep a professional distance as she moved her hands over his back. But even after she was sure that he wasn’t infected, her hands lingered on his back. She could feel his taut muscles and the bumps of his vertebrae under his skin, and she started naming the bones in her head. Then she pulled her hands away. 

“You’re not infected,” she said croakily. He turned towards her again. 

“Do you trust me now?” His dark gaze felt like it was boring into her, reaching in for her heart. 

“Yes,” she breathed, so grateful to be able to say that. “Yes. I trust you.” 

Mulder laid down on his bed, pressing his back to the wall so there was space beside him. He patted the blanket with his hand, and Scully laid down next to him. At first he kept his distance, but she snuggled into his chest and he wrapped his arms around her. She fell asleep to the sound of his breathing and dreamed of soft comfort.

**Author's Note:**

> one down, who knows how many to go! hopefully you guys liked this and want more, please leave comments so i know what to work on or what you want in the next chapter :)


End file.
